In shavings conveyors (particularly belt or scraper conveyors) disruptions occur occasionally in operation as a result of an accumulation of shavings. Since in this case the conveying element (hinge belt of scraper chain) is more or less jammed, there is a danger of overloading of the drive assembly. In order to protect the drive assembly against overloading when jamming of the conveying element occurs, known shavings conveyors are equipped with a slipping clutch. However, such a construction has various disadvantages. Because of the wear on the clutch discs of the slipping clutch, the torque transmitted by the drive assembly to the conveying element alters. This not only restricts the functional reliability of the shavings conveyor, but also makes undesirable readjustments necessary in the case of automated production plant.
The object of the invention, therefore, is to construct a shavings conveyor in such a way that a reliable protection against overloading of the drive assembly is achieved using simple and largely maintenance-free means.